WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR FEBRUARY

Debbie - you are so right about using the word 'losing'. Too funny! I definitely don't want to 'find' anything I've lost in this journey!!

Barbiecat - your post about the wonderful diversity of this topic was so right on the mark and it touched my heart. I hadn't ever really thought about why this thread is so good but when I read your post I realized you were exactly right!

Today was great for me on burning calories. I used my heart monitor when I was helping my dh shovel the driveway and the roof (we had 3 1/2 ft of snow on the roof in some places!) and I burned 600 calories! I also went to spinning class this morning so there is no way I'm going to be able to eat all my exercise calories. I've been on kind of a plateau lately and I'm hoping maybe today will make that scale budge!

Hope everyone else is having a great weekend!

squeaking in is GOOD!

MacMadame,
I'm interested in doing a 50-mile bike ride in May. Right now, I can bike for about 40 minutes straight without stopping (flat to low rolling hills). Any suggestions for building up to 50 miles? I have a 21 speed commuter bike.

Lani

Hi Everyone,

I have been reading but not taking time to post. Just realized I hadn't posted on this thread since the 16th, so I will try to catch you up.

First of all, welcome to the newbies. There is no thread like this one elsewhere on MFP. If you feel like this is the right place for you to be, then you are right!!! And most welcome!!!:flowerforyou:

If you are a reader of the Golden Sneakers thread, below is a "rerun" so you can save your eyes and move on, unless you think it is so interesting that you have to read it twice!!:noway:

I have been having problems with dizziness, a lousy short term memory, (lousy even for me), disrupted sleep patterns (falling asleep, waking in a couple of hours and not being able to fall back to sleep for 2-3 hours), a general feeling of being in a fog, great difficulty following things through to a logical conclusion, and episodes of being on my way down the road in my car and suddenly having no idea where I was going.:huh: Fortunately, I have managed to remember within a minute or so. After a few days of this, things reached a point where when I was getting ready for work on Tuesday --coming back from being off for two days--I realized that I felt totally incapable of doing my job. I didn't call in sick. Guess I called in "stupid." :laugh:

Anyway, I called my doctor, but wasn't able to see her 'til Thursday. I managed to work on Wednesday, and also went in after my appointment on Thursday. Apparently, I am experiencing the aftereffects of my concussion--a result of the "attack of the killer shopping cart" last January. The good news is, it could be worse. I haven't been having the headaches that can commonly reoccur after such an episode. The bad news is, I may have to put up with this for up to SIX months!!!:grumble: NOT what I had in mind for the Spring and Summer. It appears my symptoms are more pronounced when I am under stress.

While all this has been going on, in the back of my mind, I have been concerned about how would I deal with the addition of something going wrong w/my parents' health, or any other unexpected problem. Timing is everything. Thursday night I called my mother during my last break at work and she described feeling slightly nauseous, a feeling of being very warm, and then not being able to see out of one eye, and when she tried to look at something, her eyes didn't seem to be working together. All this had happened about 30 minute before I called. After a few minutes when the feeling was no longer there, she got up and started clearing the dinner dishes off the table!!!!!:noway: :huh: It never occurred to my dear 94 year old mother, or my dad that something had happened that required immediate investigation. :noway: :huh:

As soon as I heard what had happened, I told her "SIT DOWN!! To H3LL with the dishes!! Then I locked up my desk and left work two hours before my shift was over and took her to the hospital, where my theory was confirmed. After a CT scan, X-rays, some blood work, and a physical assessment, they decided she had experienced a "TIA" (transient ischemic attack), which is also known as a mini-stroke. Fortunately, other than being a little tired the next day, she has had no residual effects.

I called her on Friday morning, and she sounded pretty good. I, on the other hand, was a wreck!!:sick: :frown: I was so wound up after finally getting home that I didn't get to sleep til after 2 am. I woke up at 8 am, feeling like I had a hangover--all the pain and none of the benefits!!:grumble: Work was out of the question, so I missed my second day of the week. Did catch up on sleep, and actually got energetic enough to completely scrub my bathtub and shower walls--a task I haven't felt up to dealing with for quite a while--it needed the attention. I managed to get to bed before 9p, so getting up at 5 am for work was not a bad as it usually is. ( I HATE Saturdays, as I start at 6am. Yuck!!)

Today, I feel pretty good, even after working for nine hours, but there is no guarantee that this feeling will continue. As for weight loss, well, my exercise has been sporadic, but my appetite has not, so I may have to adjust my ticker upward by about 4 lbs. if I can't get things moving in the right direction. I am still logging everything, but I don't have the mental energy to plan so that I stay under my calories, and though my intention is to get some cardio in every day, that doesn't happen as often as it should. It has been sunny here, but still staying cool, under 60 degrees (F). It actually got below freezing last night--had to dust off the de-icer and use it before I could leave this morning.

The doggies are being good--more or less. Bradley decided he couldn't wait for me to open the new bag of doggie food that was standing in the kitchen. After ignoring it for three days, he decided to chew a big hole in it today, and "the three little piggies" had a great time munching out until I came home tonight. :grumble: Now they are passed out in various spots, and will wake up long enough to relocate to the bedroom, which is what I am about to do.

Trying to respond to posts is about impossible right now, so I will close by saying. Keep up the good work, and if you are having adversity, don't give up. Maybe you are a little distracted, like me. I am trying to go back to basics and try and get back on the right track. I have decided that if I can't get my weight back to where it oughta be to match my ticker, I am going to adjust it on Feb 28th.

Take care all.:flowerforyou:

Barb

Morning everyone;

Sorry to hear about your Mom Barb. I'm glad you took her to the drs.

Jackie; Hang in there with your Mum; My devotional this morning touched on patience. We all wan't patience and ask God to give it to us "right now"!!! Sadly it doesn't work that way.

Just a quick check in for me. I'm off to the elliptical to get in 30 min before getting ready for Church.

It's a beautiful day here too. Hopefully we can get in a walk this afternoon.

BBL,

Cindy

Weaklink - Hang in there! You sound like a very strong woman.
Jackie - A sense of humor will get you through the tough times.

Vickim - I like your attitude. You'll break through the plateau.

Back to reality tomorrow. I need to make time to exercise, once I get back to work. Any suggestions?

Lani

Well I weighed in this morning and NO change in my weight...Guess I'm just glad I didn't gain any. Hopefully next Sunday's weigh in will be better.

Sounds like a lot of you are having some pretty tough times now with family and your health. I am thinking about all of you and want to thank all of you for just being here. Everyone on here helps on our bad days and on our good days. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU!

:noway: Gained back 2 lbs since last weekend. I think last weekend was a fluke with the weight loss given the vomiting and you know the other thing. Nonetheless I am happy having made it to 165 lbs. Also could not exercise this past week. It will all work out again. Just a temporary bump in the road.

It is an absolutely gorgeous day here on the westcoast. Frost at night and up to 15 degrees celcius during the day.

I see we are approaching the 500 mark of posts. Oh well.

I am feeling a lot better, but still really tired. More dental work to come on Monday, and then done for a while. Yeah. :bigsmile:

Have a great Sunday!

Rebel

Good afternoon to you all,

The sun is shining here in NC. We are having good temps for a change. I wore a dress to church with a sweater. Put a coat on but that had to come off as soon as we got in the car. Hot Flashees are hitting me big time. Been having to throw the covers off a couple of times a night. Hubby said please don't freeze me but I replied better that than a raging hormonal maniac!

I was hoping for a walk this afternoon but my son went over to help out at a lady's house (in our neighborhood) who just had surgery last week. She is still in the hospital and some of the men are trying to clean up her yard before she comes home. Poor thing, her husband died and she has a 17 year old spoiled baby of a daughter. But I do know how self centered teenagers can be so I'm trying not to be too harsh. I just really don't think the daughter really realizes how bad off her mama was and that she still has a long recovery to go.

Welcome Tamitoo; Nice to have you on board. I see that the end of your sign in name is nc. Does that mean you are from NC? We have a couple of us from NC on here.

Renny: Glad you are doing better. Hang in there and things will get better. Remember we only get one day at a time. I've been thinking a lot about choices lately. We get to and have to make them. I'm just trying to understand my reasons.

Teri: Girl, I'm so understanding about the emotional eating. I do it then I beat myself up over it. What does your OA group have to say? It's not like AA where you can be totally abstinent but since we have to eat to live what is the fine line?

Well, the kitchen is waiting to be cleaned up and there's no one to do it but me so I will make the right choice and just do it even though I'm really not feeling it!

Cindy

Bought my dress for the wedding (youngest son is getting married June 4th). I had already seen it on Friday at "Malanie Lyne" and it jumped out at me. My daughter Natalie came with me and agreed it is a wonderful dress. Black with white stitching on it. Fairly unusual (just right for a person who's called "Rebel"), yet elegant at calf length. It is sleeveless, so will have to find some bolero jacket to go with it. Plenty of time for that. And - guess what - I bought it in a size 10!! Nervy of me, isn't it!! :bigsmile: :bigsmile:

I have a busy week ahead with more dental work on Monday and then going with Natalie for her knee surgery on Friday.

Rebel

My daughter just went on a Low Carb Diet. Is anyone doing this? Does it work for you? Please give me your opinions as I'm thinking about it too.

My daughter just went on a Low Carb Diet. Is anyone doing this? Does it work for you? Please give me your opinions as I'm thinking about it too.

I have done it in the past. It enabled me to lose 36 lbs, and then regain 45!!! I LIKE carbs. All carbs are not bad. Veggies (non starchy low glycemic ones) are good sources, as are fruits. Whole grains. Processed carbs are the kind to avoid.

When I started my lifestyle change last April, I knew that there was no point in starting an extreme program that I could not follow indefinitely, as it would just lead to binging and falling off the wagon and backsliding. Watching my calories, logging my foods and exercise, and monitoring my fat and sodium intake while making sure I consume sufficient fiber have worked great for me. Others may need to monitor sugar or other factors, depending on their health needs.

The point I am making is that MFP is a great tool, and you can still be very successful at winning the "losing game" without setting yourself up for failure by following an eating plan that is not something you can sustain indefinitely.

I have read comments from people on low carb who swear they can eat that way for life, and if they can, great--I wish them every success. There are others with specific dietary restrictions, (ie diabetics) that have to treat carbs in particular and dieting in general differently than those who don't have that issue. My comments are not directed toward these folks.

I can't personally recommend low carb as a permanent weight loss solution. You will probably lose on it, but KEEPING IT OFF can be a different story.

Good luck,

Barb

Good morning, everyone!

I totally blew it yesterday--daughters came home with candy, son and girlfriend came home with leftovers. I know I was tired but I also knew that I didn't need any of it! Oh well, I am back on plan today. I know what to do and I am doing it! Good, healthy choices and lots of water, get my exercises done. I'm on it!

I hope I have welcomed the newbies! If not, WELCOME!:flowerforyou: This is a wonderful group to be a part of!